Lisa Chambers (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. This debate is very welcome. I am from County Mayo. I think there is great potential and opportunity off the west and north-west coasts.I can see the focus is on the east coast and the south for the time being. We are even seeing projects as far up as County Clare, as Senator Garvey detailed. Ultimately, however, when we look 20 years down the line, it will be the west and north west that will drive our renewable offshore wind energy generation. That is where the most wind is and the most opportunities are but I appreciate the technology required for those areas will be quite advanced, as the seabed is deeper, it is windier, and the waters are more choppy. It presents a challenge but there will be a huge opportunity for us there.

There are probably some constraints we need to address now. Even though it may be ten years before we see the first floating offshore wind farm off the coast of counties Mayo, Sligo or Donegal, it is a realistic target. We need to let industry know we are open for business in those areas. That is my concern. I raised with the Minister, Deputy Ryan, the fact there was understandably a focus on the east and south coasts, but that means the west has been left on the back burner, for want of a better phrase. We are not really letting industry explore or allowing it the space to look at the west and the north west. The Government may take the view right now that the technology is not quite there yet, but that does not mean we should prevent industry from exploring the possibility of offshore off the coast of Mayo and right up into Donegal. It will take time to put the infrastructure in place and to plan for those things. By the time we are ready to move, that technology will be there. It is already there or thereabouts. We have seen floating turbines off the coast of Aberdeen. We know they are in place in other locations so we are close to being there. The planning needs to happen now. We need to say to industry we are open for business off the coast of Mayo and right up the north west.

The Minister of State will be very aware there are constraints regarding the grid. My understanding is EirGrid currently has no plans to upgrade or expand the grid network in the west and north west. We are currently on 110 kV lines, which are not capable of dealing with an offshore wind farm off the west coast. In tandem with our preparations and planning for offshore wind technology and those opportunities in that region, we need to plan to upgrade the grid in the same way in order that it can facilitate bringing that energy onshore. That does not mean there are not other things we can do as well. We know the Corrib gasfield will run out in the next number of years, certainly in seven to eight years' time. That is a brownfield site that could be used for green hydrogen, sustainable aviation fuel and a renewable energy park, again, for want of a better phrase. That requires planning, strategic foresight, and thinking now about what we want to have in place in ten years' time. That would allow us to get the energy onshore, add value to it, and convert it into something else so we are not thinking about the grid in that context. That could be an alternative or something we could do to complement bringing some energy onto the grid.

There are a lot of opportunities in this area. I understand that Government capacity and resources are limited. We cannot do everything at once. I understand the demands. We have the 2030 targets and have to try to meet the 2050 targets, which will come around the corner before we know it. I understand why there is a focus on what I consider the low-hanging fruit, namely, the south and the east coasts, but we are missing an opportunity if we do not start planning for the west and the north west because that is where it is going to be. We, and the Minister, talk a lot about Ireland becoming a net exporter of wind energy. Let us service the domestic market first because there is a huge demand for energy in Ireland. Energy costs have gone through the roof. People want to use green energy. There is also huge demand in the aviation industry. There is certainly a huge domestic market for all the energy we could produce from renewables as well.

That brings me to my next point around community benefit. When we start operating the coastal communities - Senator Garvey touched on this - and we talk about the fishing and coastal communities, how do we go about compensating those communities for this new chapter we are heading into as regards energy production in the country? One potential solution is that people living in those communities are offered a cheaper rate of electricity. That would be a significant benefit to those communities. It is something that needs to be thrashed out. We need to discuss those things. In addition, how do we bring fishing communities with us? There could be huge opportunities. If there is an offshore floating wind farm, there will not really be people fishing in between turbines, if we are honest. That is just not viable or feasible. What we will then have is a protected marine area around the turbines where biodiversity, fish and marine life will thrive. There will be a spillover outside of that area, which will be a rich fishing ground. There are benefits to fishing communities in that when there are protected areas around that space, there are great opportunities. It is about working with fishing communities to explain the benefits of having offshore wind farms in those communities and, of course, making sure we protect the limited fishing we now have, which has been reduced dramatically over many years.

It is great to hear that MARA will be up and running by July. That is fantastic. I wish Vice Admiral Mark Mellett the very best as he heads up that organisation. He is a hugely experienced Mayo man, and a former naval officer and Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces. He is a fantastic individual to lead that organisation. MARA will be crucial to getting this going. It needs to be properly resourced and have the capacity to deal with the demands that will be made of it. Ultimately, our future energy supply depends on it.

I ask the Minister of State to please reflect on the west and the north west and not leave it another ten years to start the planning. Let us not wait for Department officials to suggest we have the technology today. We do not need the technology today. We need to plan today so we are ready to do this work in five, ten or 15 years' time. I also ask the Minister of State to engage with EirGrid to ask it very seriously what its plans are to upgrade grid capacity in the west and north west. If it is not fit for purpose today, it will certainly not be fit for purpose in ten years' time.